While racy international titles are having to tone down in line with local censors and sensibilities, their rapid expansion in the region is showing that there is both reader and advertiser demand for their products. "Although the jokes that make men laugh may be different in different countries, men share humour as a way of communicating with each other. And men around the world like girls, and that's a common denominator," says Simon Greves, general manager of FHM International.
FHM is one of the fastest-growing men's magazines in the region, having launched its first local edition, in Singapore, in 1997, and a further six Asian editions since then, most recently in China. China is a huge draw -- with half a billion men, the potential for men's magazines is obvious. Esquire led the way with a China launch in 1999. In the past year, FHM 's launch has made a splash, along with Men's Uno, a localised version of the formula used in Hong Kong and Taiwan, and the rebranding of T.O.M to a more general interest The Outlook Magazine. Maxim announced it would launch a Chinese edition in April last year and then didn't. Men's Health started up in May. Esquire has the largest claimed circulation (395,000), while some of the women's magazines have launched supplements for men, including Harper's Bazaar.
Charley Kan, national creative director and Beijing managing director of MEC China, says the content of lads' magazines makes them more like 'Cosmo for men' than their international editions. "Newly-rich Chinese men need more publications to teach them how to enjoy life, and advertisers are more than happy to associate their product with beautiful shots and brand stories, rather than in daily papers or weekly news magazines next to stories about coal miners," he points out.
In Hong Kong, WeMen and Maxim are the most recent titles to launch, in addition to the more fashion-focused Esquire and Men's Uno, along with Him and Men's Machine, all of which have been able to maintain their circulation despite greater competition, benefitting from the limited men's oriented sport or business titles previously available. In Singapore, Maxim hit the newsstands for the first time in the final quarter of last year, alongside localised editions of FHM, Men's Health, and home-grown title New Man. Of the four, only FHM is audited (35,000), and Maxim has the biggest print run (45,000). The sector has shown strong growth in the past two years, but still well behind the women's magazines' estimated 50,000 circulated copies.
Advertisers, however, have been slow to move away from newspapers as their favourite medium for targeting men, despite the relative high cost of papers and TV. Fashion, fragrance and skincare brands are the main users of men's magazines, while cars and electronics brands have so far steered clear, the exception being Stuff magazine, launched last year, which is gadget-based in content but has a cover shot similar to the lad's mags.
MindShare Singapore senior manager Alistair Lennie says he recommends Heineken goes into Men's Health rather than Maxim or FHM for a more discerning male audience, while Nike uses culture and style titles for a more youthful, hip image. "Many advertisers work to maintain aspirational or premium brand values," he says. "Therefore, many steer clear of associating their product or brand with women in bikinis."
The same is true in the Philippines, where FHM is one of the highest-circulating magazines on sale, with only the gossip titles coming out in front, but with content -- recently toned down by a new editor -- that put off the likes of Gillette and Nike.
MEC Singapore managing partner Tess Caven says that while the advertising industry will always have concerns about titles that are not audited -- which means most of the men's magazines in Asia -- men's titles have clear appeal to the right brands. "While this is a niche market, it does provide access to men who are more interested in fashion, health and lifestyle, with minimal wastage. But if you are an upmarket or lifestyle brand, you would have huge wastage against the more 'basic male', older, less-educated and lower-income men who are less aware of or concerned about lifestyle issues and opportunities."
Linda Kovarik, executive planning director for Beacon Communications, says more 'beauty' ads will turn up in men's magazines in the coming year, spanning suncare, skincare, fragrance and oral care. "Everyone is looking for an edge, and looks certainly don't hurt in gaining that competitive edge professionally and sexually," says Kovarik.
"If you look at China, with 113 males born for every 100 females, men will need to develop far more than their personalities -- and that's a huge motivation to reach for pore refiner," says Kovarik.
FHM's Greves, who oversees seven Asian editions, says L'Oréal is already one of the magazine's biggest advertisers. He says the fact that the Asian editions "tend to be less racy" counts as a plus for advertisers in many markets, with brands like Tag Heuer, Rado and Hugo Boss taking out more pages than in the Western editions because the title is "more premium".
In Thailand, Maxim is the new kid on the block, having launched in January, not long after last year's FHM Thai edition launch. GM, the Thai equivalent of GQ, launched a decade ago and has a large and loyal following. Lennie says that while some clients are put off by the number of nudes and the clear male bias among readers, lad's magazines are a welcome addition to the media line-up. "They're perfect for the male-focused luxury advertisers. If you can afford a men's mag, you can afford higher-end products," he says.
Malaysia, meanwhile, is dictated by official restrictions on the kind of content that's allowed in men's magazines, which has led to significantly watered-down versions of the international titles' local editions. Most recent among them is Maxim, launched last year. Men's Health began two years ago, while FHM's Malaysian edition has been around about five years. Two men's titles, Loaded and Men's Revue, stopped publishing after run-ins with the authorities over content.
In Japan, meanwhile, the only lad's magazine available is GQ, but not as we know it. Editorial covers politics, business and fashion, and there is little attention paid to female models compared to the US and UK editions. MindShare's Tokyo manager, Takeshi Komuro, says young Japanese men tend to prefer high-circulation comic books with women on the cover, along with fashion titles like Smart, Men's NonNo and Gainer. FHM is, nevertheless, looking at launching a Japanese edition in the near future, along with local versions for Hong Kong and India.
Greves says men everywhere increasingly want the same things. "Now, everyone's watching the same TV, listening to the same music, films are released now on a given date the world over. The job has become a lot easier for us because of that."
FHM is one of the fastest-growing men's magazines in the region, having launched its first local edition, in Singapore, in 1997, and a further six Asian editions since then, most recently in China. China is a huge draw -- with half a billion men, the potential for men's magazines is obvious. Esquire led the way with a China launch in 1999. In the past year, FHM 's launch has made a splash, along with Men's Uno, a localised version of the formula used in Hong Kong and Taiwan, and the rebranding of T.O.M to a more general interest The Outlook Magazine. Maxim announced it would launch a Chinese edition in April last year and then didn't. Men's Health started up in May. Esquire has the largest claimed circulation (395,000), while some of the women's magazines have launched supplements for men, including Harper's Bazaar.
Charley Kan, national creative director and Beijing managing director of MEC China, says the content of lads' magazines makes them more like 'Cosmo for men' than their international editions. "Newly-rich Chinese men need more publications to teach them how to enjoy life, and advertisers are more than happy to associate their product with beautiful shots and brand stories, rather than in daily papers or weekly news magazines next to stories about coal miners," he points out.
In Hong Kong, WeMen and Maxim are the most recent titles to launch, in addition to the more fashion-focused Esquire and Men's Uno, along with Him and Men's Machine, all of which have been able to maintain their circulation despite greater competition, benefitting from the limited men's oriented sport or business titles previously available. In Singapore, Maxim hit the newsstands for the first time in the final quarter of last year, alongside localised editions of FHM, Men's Health, and home-grown title New Man. Of the four, only FHM is audited (35,000), and Maxim has the biggest print run (45,000). The sector has shown strong growth in the past two years, but still well behind the women's magazines' estimated 50,000 circulated copies.
Advertisers, however, have been slow to move away from newspapers as their favourite medium for targeting men, despite the relative high cost of papers and TV. Fashion, fragrance and skincare brands are the main users of men's magazines, while cars and electronics brands have so far steered clear, the exception being Stuff magazine, launched last year, which is gadget-based in content but has a cover shot similar to the lad's mags.
MindShare Singapore senior manager Alistair Lennie says he recommends Heineken goes into Men's Health rather than Maxim or FHM for a more discerning male audience, while Nike uses culture and style titles for a more youthful, hip image. "Many advertisers work to maintain aspirational or premium brand values," he says. "Therefore, many steer clear of associating their product or brand with women in bikinis."
The same is true in the Philippines, where FHM is one of the highest-circulating magazines on sale, with only the gossip titles coming out in front, but with content -- recently toned down by a new editor -- that put off the likes of Gillette and Nike.
MEC Singapore managing partner Tess Caven says that while the advertising industry will always have concerns about titles that are not audited -- which means most of the men's magazines in Asia -- men's titles have clear appeal to the right brands. "While this is a niche market, it does provide access to men who are more interested in fashion, health and lifestyle, with minimal wastage. But if you are an upmarket or lifestyle brand, you would have huge wastage against the more 'basic male', older, less-educated and lower-income men who are less aware of or concerned about lifestyle issues and opportunities."
Linda Kovarik, executive planning director for Beacon Communications, says more 'beauty' ads will turn up in men's magazines in the coming year, spanning suncare, skincare, fragrance and oral care. "Everyone is looking for an edge, and looks certainly don't hurt in gaining that competitive edge professionally and sexually," says Kovarik.
"If you look at China, with 113 males born for every 100 females, men will need to develop far more than their personalities -- and that's a huge motivation to reach for pore refiner," says Kovarik.
FHM's Greves, who oversees seven Asian editions, says L'Oréal is already one of the magazine's biggest advertisers. He says the fact that the Asian editions "tend to be less racy" counts as a plus for advertisers in many markets, with brands like Tag Heuer, Rado and Hugo Boss taking out more pages than in the Western editions because the title is "more premium".
In Thailand, Maxim is the new kid on the block, having launched in January, not long after last year's FHM Thai edition launch. GM, the Thai equivalent of GQ, launched a decade ago and has a large and loyal following. Lennie says that while some clients are put off by the number of nudes and the clear male bias among readers, lad's magazines are a welcome addition to the media line-up. "They're perfect for the male-focused luxury advertisers. If you can afford a men's mag, you can afford higher-end products," he says.
Malaysia, meanwhile, is dictated by official restrictions on the kind of content that's allowed in men's magazines, which has led to significantly watered-down versions of the international titles' local editions. Most recent among them is Maxim, launched last year. Men's Health began two years ago, while FHM's Malaysian edition has been around about five years. Two men's titles, Loaded and Men's Revue, stopped publishing after run-ins with the authorities over content.
In Japan, meanwhile, the only lad's magazine available is GQ, but not as we know it. Editorial covers politics, business and fashion, and there is little attention paid to female models compared to the US and UK editions. MindShare's Tokyo manager, Takeshi Komuro, says young Japanese men tend to prefer high-circulation comic books with women on the cover, along with fashion titles like Smart, Men's NonNo and Gainer. FHM is, nevertheless, looking at launching a Japanese edition in the near future, along with local versions for Hong Kong and India.
Greves says men everywhere increasingly want the same things. "Now, everyone's watching the same TV, listening to the same music, films are released now on a given date the world over. The job has become a lot easier for us because of that."
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